How two California entrepreneurs bought a Colorado landscaping company

Happy Monday!

Today I’ve got an acquisition story about Shawn and David.

One came from the music industry, the other from short-term rentals and commercial real estate.

Neither had ever touched a shovel professionally, but seven months after starting negotiations, they closed on a landscape installation company in Northern Colorado, and promptly had to navigate a family exit they didn’t see coming.

Before I share Shawn and David’s case study, here’s another success story from the Acquisition Ace community.

Whitney joined Acquisition Ace in August while on maternity leave with her third child.

Just 9 months later, she closed on a $2M commercial cleaning company in Las Vegas, putting only $90K out of pocket (including all fees and QOE).

She brought on family investors, negotiated $150K in working capital from the seller, and structured the deal to generate over $300K in cash flow after debt service. That’s over 200% ROI in year one while keeping maximum flexibility with three kids under five.

She went from corporate entertainment executive to business owner without sacrificing time with her family.

👉 Want the same kind of guidance that Whitney got (which can help you close your first deal faster)? Book a call with our team here.

Before the deal

Shawn and David had known each other for 13 years, built several ventures together, and developed a great trusting partnership.

When David suggested pivoting from riskier tech-adjacent projects toward something more tangible and stable, they found Acquisition Ace within hours, jumped in, and looked at 75 to 80 businesses before finding the right one.

Finding the deal

The landscape installation company in Northern Colorado checked nearly every box:

• Strong SDE

• An area experiencing rapid development and population growth

• An antiquated operation with obvious modernization upside

• And an industry that no algorithm or AI is going to disrupt anytime soon

The previous owner was running everything on paper, did no marketing, had no Google presence, yet was still highly profitable.

They flew out, took a meeting, and submitted an LOI on-site.

(Inside Acquisition Ace, members learn how to build a disciplined search process that separates viable deals from the noise, and when to move fast when the right one appears. To see how Acquisition Ace could help you acquire your first business, book a call with our team here.)

The deal breakdown

Asking price: $2.5M

Final purchase price: $2.4M

Bank appraisal: $2.6M (business valued above asking price)

SDE: ~$970K

Financing: 80% SBA loan, 10% seller note, 10% buyer injection

Working capital: ~$100K included at close

Projected SDE after debt service: ~$650-700K annually

The deal came in at a strong multiple relative to the bank’s independent valuation, meaning they effectively bought below market value even at asking price.

What they’re doing now

The first three months were harder than expected.

The previous owner left after just one month instead of staying for the contracted six.

His two sons who worked in the business became a source of friction, ultimately resigning after tensions around the new ownership’s direction.

So, they hired a general manager with 15 years of industry experience and a horticulture degree from Colorado State University, which changed everything.

By next year, the plan is to add three maintenance crews and three installation crews, building the recurring revenue base that makes the installation work significantly more profitable and the company significantly more valuable.

The key lesson

“Verify everything. Absolutely everything. Don’t take their word for it - double check contracts, numbers, equipment. And don’t be afraid to walk away or ask for a better price if you find a discrepancy.”

Shawn and David went in expecting a smoother transition than they got, and what ultimately saved them was their mindset.

They refused to blame the situation, adapted quickly, hired the right people, and kept moving forward.

That combination of tenacity and trust between partners is what’s turning a difficult start into a promising future.

Ready to find and close your first acquisition?

Join the Acquisition Ace community with 2,000+ members who are learning to find, finance, and close deals just like Shawn and David.

👉 Book a call with our team here to see if it's a good fit.